Final Post

The picture I chose is from September, when it had all of its leaves. I really have become more connected with nature because of my tree and focusing on it once a week. It shocked me how much my tree would change week by week. I remember how much of a shock it was to me when I noticed all of its leaves were falling off, or when the leaves all turned completely red in only one week. If I would not have had this journal, I know I would have just ran out of my apartment every day for class without noticing one change. Every time I'm around a lot of trees I think about how important they are to the environment. This journal gave me a better understanding for why ecosystem services are important and why they need to be in balance so that the environment is healthy and running how it was intended. My entity has changed a great deal over the semester, but I'm glad I chose something that is right outside my door because now I get to see it grow all of its leaves back in the spring :)

Economic Sustainability

So my tree officially has ZERO leaves on it. But if you look closely, you can see there is a birds nest in my tree! The economic environment surrounding my tree is basically just the apartment complex that I live at. The management placed the trees to help promote economic sustainability so that it was more appealing to people considering to sign a lease with them. If there were no trees, then it would look less appealing and a lot more bare which would not promote economic sustainability. Basically, the more trees that are surrounding apartment buildings, the higher the occupancy rates.

Thanksgiving

This is a picture of Westfield Mall in Merrillville Indiana on "Black Friday." This is the mall near my home town where I worked for 3 and a half years. I worked at a retail clothing store and had worked 3 Black Friday's in row so I know how crazy people can get. Although, I had never seen anything like this before! All of these people are waiting ONLY for Victoria's Secret! The reason I've posted this picture instead of a picture of a turkey is because Black Friday is basically a Thanksgiving tradition now for a lot of Americans.

Social Sustainability

My tree has lost a lot of leaves since last week! I didn't think it happened so quickly. Trees can promote environmental justice by having more of them in poor communities, which typically tend to be cities. Urban forests are a way to reduce carbon monoxide in the air considering trees absorb it. By planting more trees in urban or poor communities, equity is being promoted for these communities.

Sustainability

My tree is not surrounded by other trees. It is surrounded more by artificial, man made materials rather than other natural entities. Usually trees are seen together, i.e. a forest, but my tree was placed where it is for aesthetic reasons. Other trees in my community are placed in the same spots as you go down the row of apartments; it looks pretty uniform. But what are the ways my entity can promote environmental sustainability if improved. Trees help sustain the environment by reducing carbon dioxide in the environment they are present. By adding more trees near my tree, it can help promote a more sustainable environment. Also by having more trees next to my apartment, they can help shade it from sunlight during hot summer days. In the winter, the trees can help prevent cold winds from making my apartment colder. Trees seem to be the best thing for the environment!

Abiotic Environment

My tree is red! Every single leaf is completely red without even a speck of green on any of them. Abiotic features of my tree's environment can affect it by destroying it. One of them is rain. If it rains really hard and if there is a lot of wind, it can completely destroy my tree by breaking it in half. My tree's trunk is pretty thin so there is a higher chance of this happening. Snow and ice can break the branches of my tree. Tornadoes can completely wipe out the entire tree and place it somewhere else, and high winds in general can tear off branches.

"Halloween" by Denny Davis
The night is dark
and the goblins are out,
and the witches and black cats
are prowling about.

And costumed creatures
the strangest I've seen,
are knocking on doors
'cause tonight's Halloween!

and for more Halloween fun, click on the link below :)
Halloween Light Show 2011--must watch!